The increased availability of network-capable computing devices has led to a wide variety of communication options for users. Users can exchange messages and content through various communication systems including e-mail, instant messaging, chat rooms, bulletin and discussion boards, file sharing applications, and blogs and other web sites. For example, instant messaging systems such as Internet Relay Chat (IRC), ICQ, AOL Instant Messenger, Yahoo! Messenger, and Microsoft's MSN Messenger are widely used by many users on the Internet. Similar systems are available for messaging within local networks, as well.
Various arrangements of the previously-listed (and other) communication systems have been proposed for use in so-called “social networking” systems. Generally speaking, a “social network” refers to a group of persons or other entities (“members”) linked to one another through one or more types of social connections. Social networks are also commonly referred to as “friend-of-a-friend” networks, although social networks may of course include or consist entirely of entities linked by social connections other than friendship. For example, a social network can include members linked to one another by connections including common friendship, place or field of employment, place of education, place of residence, membership in a club or other group, or common hobbies or topical interests. Many social networking systems attempt to provide computer-based tools for maintaining, enhancing, and creating social networks.
For example, social networking web sites provide users with web space to create a profile and link to various other users designated as “friends.” See, for example, MySpace, Facebook, and Friendster. Users of such sites can post messages and other content to web pages accessible to various parties of their choosing (for example, to “friends only” or to the public at large). Social networking sites may also utilize instant messaging and online chat rooms that allow for near-instantaneous communication between users.
Recent developments in the field of social networking and online communication have been directed towards providing tools for users to create, manage, and explore social networks. For instance, mapping of social networks has been proposed based on correlating contact lists. A user can then explore various social networks of which the user is a part by using the resulting map, diagram, or other representation. For example, a user may use social networking tools to discover that friends of one or more of the user's friends (heretofore unknown to the user) may share common interests. The user may then pursue a closer relationship with the newly found friends-of-a-friend, for example, by discussing topics and sharing content of common interest with both the user's newly-found and original friends. As another example, tools such as Huminity may “traverse” a social network based on buddy or contact lists and provide a representation of the social network.
Social networking sites (and other tools) may provide some indication of changes in social networks over time. For example, as noted above, a social networking site may provide a representation such as a diagram or list of a user's friends, colleagues and other social network members. The social networking site may even update the diagram or list frequently. For instance, the social networking site or system may nearly-instantaneously update the user's social network when the user sends a message to a new friend or contact or when the user deletes a friend or contact.
Many social networking sites and other tools may provide an indicator as to whether a user is online or otherwise available. For example, instant messaging applications frequently provide “buddy lists” that indicate whether a contact is online, online-but-idle, or offline. Some instant messaging applications further indicate when a contact is preparing a message. For example, the open-source messaging application Gaim (Sourceforge) provides an indicator in a user's instant message window when the other party to the messaging session is typing a message.
Various tools and systems are directed toward facilitating online collaboration. Users may establish online chat rooms using, for example, variants of IRC and IM systems. Additionally, refinements in messaging tools (such as IM tools) have been directed towards management of online communication. For example, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2006/0090137 includes discussion of threaded text chat systems. Other online messaging/chat systems allow users to specify parameters so as to block access or views of messages from other users.
Communication tools that utilize data available from social network systems have also been proposed. For example, in some such systems, a user may direct announcements or sales pitches toward members of a social network based on member parameters, such as degree of separation or member characteristics, such as demographic groupings or group membership. Other proposed systems may use social network data to block messages based on similar parameters, for example, in order to recognize and/or to filter out spam messages.
Still further communication tools that utilize social network data include those that include social network circuit functionality. For example, systems such as those discussed in U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/526,955, filed Sep. 25, 2006 and assigned to Qurio Holdings, Inc., allow users to discover, create, and manage active communications within and throughout social networks as the communications occur.
However, additional modes, configurations, and methods of online collaboration remain desirable, especially with regard to leveraging data available from presently-existing (and-ever expanding) social networks.